Results in a strange tournament

The 2025 League Cup is happening, and I have been watching some of the matches in a strange tournament that officially is a "friendly" tournament, but the winner qualifies for the CONCACAF Champions Cup, also despite the fact that the tournament is not sponsored by CONCACAF.

The tournament started in 2019 as a confrontation between the MLS and the Liga MX. 18 teams from each league participate and only play teams from the other league, three matches, with three points for a win, two points for a win on penalty kicks (it goes straight to penalty kicks if it ends in a tie), and one point for a tie (so you keep it if you lose on penalty kicks). The top eight teams, four from each league, then progress to play-off quarterfinals.

Yesterday the league stage ended with two top teams, firstly the Mexican champions from Toluca, and secondly Seattle Sounders, who won three straight matches, one a 7-0 destruction of the CONCACAF Champions Cup winners Cruz Azul. Besides Toluca, Pachuca and Tigres the Mexican sides have appeared very weak indeed; mighty America only managed three ties against Real Salt Lake, Minnesota United and Portland Timbers, while other sides than Cruz Azul also suffered big defeats to MLS sides such as Necaxa, Atlas and Santo Laguna. Regarding the latter I watched their 0-4 defeat against an LA Galaxy side with the German veteran star Marco Reus in midfield, and frankly 0-4 was too little in a match where Santos Laguna looked more like a Danish 3rd division side, and on top of that got two well-deserved red cards.

What Santos Laguna showed was perhaps the worst side of Mexican football.

While MLS sides did well overall, there was not much difference between the top four teams, amongst which Messi's Inter Miami ended on second place. In their last match they also proved better than the Mexico City side Pumas UNAM, who may have gone ahead, but then were vastly outplayed by a Miami side with Luis Suarez and Rodrigo de Paul as goalscorers and architects of the goals. I must admit that I have had reserves against Miami, but this was one of the best matches I have seen them play, and are really worth following.

The quarterfinals are in a couple of weeks, and fully replace the league matches in both leagues. All this said, it is more a comparative tournament between two leagues, perhaps more valuable for MLS to show the significant advances that the league is going through. 

The curse is lifted

Cruz Azul has had an awesome season that they were expected to crown today as they played at home at the Estadio Azteca against Santos Lagunas in the second leg of the Mexican Guardianes finals. 

"La Maquina" had won the first leg 0-1, and with a 1-1 tie they took the title that had eluded them for 23 years, to a degree that many believed that there was a curse on the team. Perhaps the curse was in the player's head, as the team initially appeared  tense, and Santos Laguna was clearly the better side in the first half. But the second half was Cruz Azul's and they deservedly got an equalizer from their Uruguayan striker "Cabecita" Rodriguez. They were still nervous though, and the dying seconds of the match exploded into a brawl between the players, as the tension of the dying second was clearly too much for some Cruz Azul players.

A pity to end the match like that, but it was quickly forgotten amid the delight of thousands of fans, who have suffered so many disappointments for 23 years, but have stuck to their team. I am sure they will be celebrating like crazy!

It is interesting that quite a few leagues have been won by clubs that had been waiting for a title for many years, just as Cruz Azul (although none for 23 years!): Spain (Atletico Madrid, 7 years), Denmark (Brøndby, 16 years), Italy (Inter Milan, 11 years), France (Lille, 10 years), or even just here in El Salvador, where FAS took their first title for 12 years.

Maybe it is the year that that ended all curses!

Breaking the curse for Cruz Azul?

Tonight I watched Cruz Azul defeating Santos Laguna 2-0 on a rainy night in Mexico City. Cruz Azul played well, deserved the victory, and this was their first match in a season in which many experts consider them as favourites to take the Mexican title. Cruz Azul is the fourth most winning club in the Mexican league, but their last title was in 1997, why some say they are under a curse. They were leading the previous Clausura season which was cancelled due to the Corona virus, but that is also why they are considered to be in the best position to take the title. They surely have a strong and experienced side.
Cruz Azul has thus taken a first step, but it is worth noting that their star striker, Jonathan Rodriguez, received a red card in this first match.
To break the curse will still require a lot of work!

Club America-Santos Laguna

Today I happened to be in Mexico City, and as America were playing at home on the Estadio Azteca I decided to go to watch the match.
There is something special about being at the mighty and impressive stadium where Pele and Maradona both lifted the World Cup trophy. Where Maradona and Carlos Alberto scored two the greatest World Cup goals ever!
So more than anything it was fantastic to be in this altar of the game.
The match between America and Santos Laguna was important as it was the last match of the league stage of the Mexican Championship, and with both teams qualified, America nevertheless wanted a good result to end with a lower standing opponent. Santos were above America before the match, so a tie was ok for them, and you could see it by the fact that they largely decided to park the bus (altthough Djaniny did create some dangerous chances) in particular in the second half, when America tried to put more pressure on the visitors. But two substitutes made the difference: The young Paraguayan Cecilio Dominguez (who was nevertheless a surprising non-starter) came on and got a penalty that the ex-PSG and Milan player Jeremy Menez (who came in after four weeks out due to injury) scored on to give them the victory.
America ends on second position (behind Toluca) and will be playing the seventh qualified team.

The America fans were great, but watching the Mexican league I still would love to see the splendid Chivas and Rayados fans. I have still not fallen for a Mexican team, but may still with time!